Yosemite Essentials

Yosemite Essentials

Accessibility

Yosemite's facilities are continually being upgraded to make them more accessible. Many of the Valley floor trails -- particularly at Lower Yosemite Falls, Bridalveil Falls, and Mirror Lake -- are wheelchair accessible, though some assistance may be required. The Valley Visitor Center is fully accessible, as are the shuttle buses around the Valley. A sign-language interpreter is available for ranger programs if you call ahead. For complete details, pick up the park's accessibility brochure at any visitor center or entrance, read it at www.nps.gov/yose/access, or call the public information office at 209/372-0200. Visitors with respiratory difficulties should take note of the park's high elevations -- the Valley floor is approximately 4,000 feet above sea level, but Tuolumne Meadows and parts of the high country hover around 10,000 feet.

Admission Fees

The vehicle admission fee is $20 per car and is valid for seven days. Individuals arriving by bus, or on foot, bicycle, motorcycle, or horseback pay $10 for a seven-day pass.

Admission Hours

The park is open daily, 24 hours a day. All entrances are open at all hours, except for Hetch Hetchy Entrance, open roughly dawn to dusk. Yosemite is in the Pacific time zone.

Emergencies

In an emergency, call 911. You can also call the Yosemite Medical Clinic in Yosemite Village at 209/372-4637. The clinic provides 24-hour emergency care.

Lost and Found

To inquire about items lost or found in Yosemite's restaurants, hotels, lounges, shuttles, or tour buses, call Delaware North Corporation at 209/372-4357 or e-mail yoselost@dncinc.com. For items lost or found in other areas of the park, contact the National Park Service at 209/379-1001 or e-mail yose_web_manager@nps.gov.

Permits

If you plan to camp in the backcountry, you must have a wilderness permit. Availability of permits, which are free, depends upon trailhead quotas. It's best to make a reservation, especially if you will be visiting May through September. You can reserve two days to 24 weeks in advance by phone, mail, or e-mail; a $5 per person processing fee is charged if and when your reservations are confirmed. In your request, include your name, address, daytime phone, the number of people in your party, trip date, alternative dates, starting and ending trailheads, and a brief itinerary. Without a reservation, you may still get a free permit on a first-come, first-served basis at wilderness permit offices at Big Oak Flat, Hetch Hetchy, Tuolumne, Wawona, the Wilderness Center, and Yosemite Valley in summer; fall through spring, visit the Valley Visitor Center.

Contacts

Wilderness Permits (Box 545, Yosemite, 95389. 209/372-0740. www.nps.gov/yose/wilderness/permits.htm).

Public Telephones

There are public telephones at park entrance stations, visitor centers, all restaurants and lodging facilities in the park, gas stations, and in Yosemite Village.

Restrooms

Public restrooms are at visitor centers; all restaurants and lodging facilities in the park; at the Village Store, the Vernal Falls footbridge, Yosemite Falls, Tuolumne Meadows, and Glacier Point; and at the Swinging Bridge, Cathedral Beach, Sentinel Beach, Church Bowl, and El Capitan picnic areas.